How to Dispel Myths of Cooking oil
Enjoi understands that foodies are drowning in information and starved for knowledge. Every one can look up for information with their smartphones, however they may not be able to distinguish the truth with the fads. This happens to cooking oil as well, for example, some may said the unsaturated fat is evil, while others said coconut oil is purely good.
What we can do to sort things out is to look for the evidence.
The Olive Oil Times had listed out some of the myths of olive oil, let's take one as an example:
Myth: Olive oil smoke point is too low for frying.
Tips 1: The way to think is to break the myth down and to know the words in it. Tips 2: Try to look for information from the official, trustworthy site, such as US FDA, HK FEHD/CFS, EFSA, CFDA.
e.g. What is smoke point?
"The smoking point is the temperature at which a chemical change takes place resulting in undesirable smoke and flavor." So that we know oil will turn bad beyond the smoke point.
What is the smoke point of the olive oil(s), and the temperature used for frying? "The smoking point of extra virgin olive oil is somewhere between 380 and 410 degrees Fahrenheit" (193.3 and 210 degrees Celsius)
"depending on the impurities and acid content of the olive oil: the better the quality, the higher the smoking point. The smoking point of olive oil is well above the temperature required for all but the highest-heat cooking."
We need to know that there are different classes of olive oil e.g. extra virgin, pure, pomace. And the quality of oil varies from batch to batch. Once you know the recommended frying temperature is about 180 degree celsius, you will know the claim is not completely truth. Though you need to know what olive oil you are buying and if it is good enough to cover for frying.
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